If you’re a landlord finding tenants, there are only three things you need to include in your ad to create a successful real estate ad. I define success by potential tenant taking the action you desire.

And, if you follow my stuff, you’ll know that I ALWAYS use a property mgmt company so this info is based on my experience working with them and doing some first-hand testing for my latest acquisition (a 168-unit apt community).

Here we go:

Big, beautiful pictures – think you’ve got more than enough in the ad already? Add 5 more. Seriously, pictures are the key. A good online program my management company uses is Smore.com. It’s a free online service gives you design templates so you just plug in copy and pics and you’ve got a nice looking online flyer in minutes. I have zero design skills so this was a godsend when I came across it.

Contact info stated multiple times in multiple ways. This is your call-to-action and needs to be stated multiple times. Make sure to give the address, email address and phone number. Everyone likes to communicate in different ways so you’ll want to give them all three options.

Include legitimate scarcity or urgency. If you have an apartment building and only have one 2-bedroom left then say it. People want what others have deemed as valuable. If you have a move-in special program then end it on a holiday weekend so you can have a definitive deadline for the potential tenant.

Go ahead and try this approach. Let me know how these ads do compared to your normal ones. If it’s anything like my properties, you’ll be pleased with the results.